Morality, homosexuality topics for discussion

Published 8:00 pm, Saturday, June 21, 2003

Audience members, both gay and straight, will have the opportunity to challenge long-standing myths and common arguments against homosexuality and the role of morality in their lives during a lecture this week at the Grace A. Dow Memorial Library.

John Corvino, professor of ethics and philosophy at Wayne State University in Detroit, will deliver the lecture "Whats Morally Wrong With Homosexuality?" at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the library auditorium.

"My hope is that diverse audience members, both gay and straight, will be challenged to rethink some long-standing myths," Corvino said.

The lecture will begin by briefly considering the argument in favor of homosexual relationships, which is not merely that they cause pleasure, but also that, like heterosexual relationships, they can be an important avenue of growth for the participants, Corvino said.

He then will addresses common arguments against homosexuality, under three broad categories:

Homosexuality isnt natural

"In a nutshell, I argue that theres no sense of natural that both applies to homosexual sex and carries moral force," he said. "There are lots of things that are unnatural in some sense, buildings, clothing, medicines in some sense, yet we think of those things as good. Just calling something unnatural doesnt mean anything."

Homosexuality is harmful

"Homosexual sex is not necessarily risky, and besides, risky behavior is not necessarily immoral," Corvino said.

Homosexuality goes against religious beliefs

"The Bible makes a number of claims (e.g. regarding slavery) that virtually no one today would accept; on the other hand, if one adopts a historical-critical reading of the Bible, one wont find a blanket condemnation of homosexual acts," Corvino said. "Its a big issue, but I try to remind people that the fact that something is a religious conviction doesnt exempt it from scrutiny."

Other topics Corvino will address include human rights and ways in which the heterosexual community can support the gay community.

"Insofar as minorities are denied basic human rights, then we need to talk about minority rights. And these are not special rights except in the sense that special circumstances (such as widespread discrimination) merit special attention."

Corvino said heterosexuals could be more supportive of the gay community if they "stop treating homosexuality like a dirty little secret and apply the same standards to us as they apply to themselves. Of course, its not just heterosexuals who are guilty of this problem  we internalize this negative view."

Another way in which the community can help is to encourage newspapers to "bite the bullet" and publish same-sex commitment ceremonies, he said.

"There will be some people who will hate it and stop subscribing but thats true to a lot of justice over the years," Corvino said. "Justice requires courage, and there is no more reason to decline to publish announcements for same-sex commitment ceremonies than there was in the 60s to decline to publish announcements for interracial marriages."

Some people do not like the analogy of race, he said, but "it points out ways of how we treat people differently on irrelevant grounds."

Corvino concludes his lecture by emphasizing the personal and social importance of ethics and the need for reasoned argument in moral discourse, he said.

Though some people wont change their minds, he said his lecture, which he has shared with audiences for 10 years, offers "seeds for further reflection."

There will be time for questions and answers.

"I think its often the most important and fruitful part of what I do," Corvino said. "I want to hear peoples questions and concerns. People within the gay community want to apply things from the lecture with things theyre dealing with. They want to talk out issues about work, coming out, morality and implications of making moral judgments."

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To read several of Corvinos essays at the Independent Gay Forum and information for the book he edited, "Same Sex: Debating the Ethics, Science, and Culture of Homosexuality," visit www.indegayforum.org/bios/corvino.html.